RF Systems Engineer (Portal)

Role

As an RF Systems Engineer you will define and evaluate phased-array RF architectures for Northwood’s satellite ground-station network. You will translate mission and link requirements into antenna, aperture, beamforming, RF front-end, calibration, and tracking requirements, and evaluate how those choices affect end-to-end communications performance.

This role sits at the intersection of phased arrays, RF systems, SATCOM links, and physical-layer communications. You will work closely with antenna, RF, DSP/communications, digital, mechanical, manufacturing, software, and operations teams to ensure that the complete ground-station system achieves its required link performance.

The ideal candidate has deep experience in phased-array or antenna systems and can reason beyond the aperture-connecting gain, scan loss, polarization, sidelobes, noise, linearity, phase noise, calibration, and propagation to EVM, acquisition, BER, throughput, and link availability.

Responsibilities

• Define phased-array antenna and RF-system architectures for satellite communication ground stations.
• Translate mission, coverage, link-availability, waveform, throughput, and regulatory requirements into aperture, RF front-end, beamforming, calibration, pointing, and tracking specifications.
• Develop and maintain end-to-end SATCOM link budgets incorporating measured aperture and RF-chain performance.
• Analyze analog, hybrid, and digital beamforming approaches in collaboration with RF and digital implementation teams.
• Determine how antenna and RF impairments affect communications performance, including EVM, carrier acquisition, BER/BLER, throughput, spectral compliance, and link availability.
• Analyze RF lineups and performance budgets for gain, noise figure, dynamic range, linearity, compression, intermodulation, phase noise, frequency stability, filtering, and isolation.
• Build Python, MATLAB, or similar models combining array behavior, measured RF performance, propagation, and modem-level metrics.
• Lead cross-functional investigations of degraded G/T, EIRP, link margin, EVM, acquisition, tracking, BER, throughput, or spectral performance.
• Support regulatory submissions, spectrum coordination, partner interface reviews, system acceptance, and operational deployment.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or advanced degree in Electrical Engineering, Communications Engineering, Applied Physics, or a related discipline.
• 2+ years of experience with phased arrays, antenna systems, RF communication systems, or SATCOM terminals.
• Experience with communication-link analysis, including EIRP, G/T, C/N0, Eb /N0, link margin, atmospheric loss, and interference.
• Understanding of digital communications sufficient to relate RF performance to modulation-dependent EVM, acquisition, BER, throughput, and spectral performance.
• Experience defining or evaluating RF lineups, including noise figure, gain, linearity, dynamic range, phase noise, filtering, and isolation.
• Hands-on experience with RF measurements and integrated system debugging using equipment such as vector network analyzers, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, noise sources, and vector signal analyzers.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with SATCOM waveforms and standards such as DVB-S2/S2X, CCSDS, or equivalent modem architectures.
• Experience analyzing modulation-dependent EVM, BER/BLER, adjacent-channel leakage, spectral regrowth, amplifier backoff, and link degradation.
• Experience with SDR-integrated RF systems or collaboration with FPGA, DSP, modem, and embedded-software teams.
• Experience with HFSS, CST, or comparable full-wave electromagnetic tools.
• Familiarity with radar, sensing, 5G NR, 802.11ad/ay, MIMO, multi-beam systems, or electronic-warfare systems where the experience transfers to array and RF-system architecture.

Additional Requirements

• Must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed

Compensation

RF/Antenna Engineer/Level 1: $104,000 - $130,000 per year

RF/Antenna Engineer/Level 2: $124,000 - $155,000 per year

Additional Information

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.